Rakhee Roy Talukdar

Jaipur, May 19 (UNI) Unmindful of the scorching sun, Mangibai waits patiently at Pipli Ka Baas railway station as he does every single day not for going anywhere but to get his supply of drinking water.

As the train chugs into the station, Mangibai and others get ready with their buckets and pots to collect water, a precious commodity in this parched zone of Rajasthan.

These water trains started by the state government in collaboration with North Western Railways (NWR) in 2002 have become the lifeline in many districts of the state, which face severe water crunch every summer.

Started from April 15 this year, these metre gauge water trains with 25 tankers filled with 35,000 litres of water leave Nasirabad station everyday for Narena and Pipli Ka Baas near Dudu in Jaipur district.

The water in the tankers comes from Bisalpur dam in Tonk district.

Nasirabad station is fitted with huge pipes which help to fill up the tankers, J N Gulani, chief engineer, Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) said.

Each day it takes three hours to fill the train, said Sohanlal Godhra, station master of Nasirabad.

''There are three water trains now running in the state, all of which are managed by NWR. The PHED department helps in providing the water,'' he added.

A train with 25 tankers leave for Phulera in Jaipur district every two days. The train for Vijaynagar in Ajmer district is sent on demand and has 10 tankers, Mr Godhra said.

The third train leaves for Narena and Pipli Ka Baas everyday.

''Out of the 25 tankers, 15 wagons are unloaded in specially built PHED tankers at Narena while the remaining 10 are for Pipli Ka Baas,'' he added.

The state government has given Rs 60 lakh to NWR for running these trains, informed S.B Gandhi, senior deputy general manager, NWR.

Initially the railways had provided free service as part of its social commitment. ''Also because, the state was facing drought in 2002-03, we agreed to run the wagons free of charge,'' he said.

Mr Gandhi said the trains are expected to run till July. He however, could not confirm the operational status of the proposed broad gauge trains, expected to start from Jodhpur's Bhagat Ki Kothi on May 15. The train is likely to cover several areas in Pali district.

The water trains, running at a speed of 25 km per hour trundles into Narena from Nasirabad within four hours where hundreds of villagers await its arrival with pitchers and other vessels. As the tankers are unloaded, there's general relief, joy and excitement all around as not only women but whole families that crowd the station to get their day's meagre water supply.

Says Mangibai, a resident of Pipli Ka Baas, where the train reaches within five hours from Nasirabad: ''The water train is a sort of miracle for us. Apart from water, it brings hope and life for us.

We cannot afford to miss the train. We would probably die if the train fails to turn up.'' ''Rather than the monsoon, we wait for the water train eagerly,'' says Mangibai with a smile.

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